Tying weaver&#39;s knots



July 21 1931. I BROWNLEE 1,815,546

TYING WEAVERS KNOTS F iled'Dec. 4, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet l awuwnto'c,

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July 21, 1931. T. BROWNLEE TYING WEAVERS KNOTS Filed Dec. 4, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 vweuto'cf 77m mas Br M 4 Patented July 21, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE THOMAS BROWNLEE, 0F CLIFTON, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS,

TO NATIONAL NET & TWINE CO. INC., OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORA- TION' OF DELAWARE TYING- A WEAVER/S KNOTS Application filed December 4, 1930. Serial no. 499,882.

This invention relates to the tying of weavers knots and in its essentials it is applicable to the tying of such knots in the form: ing, for example, of nets. In forming nets according to one known method certain strands arearranged in parallelism with each other, and other strands, supplied by shuttles corresponding in number to the spaces between the first strands, are each alternately knotted to the two strands separated by the space to which the particular shuttle corresponds, the first set of strands being advanced lengthwise as each knot is formed so that the meshes of the net develop diamondor lozenge'shaped. In the form ing of each knot in such an example a looped hitch is formed in each strand of the first set by causingia portion of the strand to cross first under'and then o'ver another por- 20" tion thereof and to bridge the loop of the hitch, a shuttle supplying a strand of the second set is passed from the reversesideot the hitch through said loop and at one side of said loop-bridging portion of the first strand and back through the loop at theotlijer'side of saidportion, thus leaving the second strand looped aroundsaid portion and its loop embraced by thehitch, and finally the hitch is constricted upon the second loop to consolidate or complete the knot. Heretofore there has been no means to control the constriction of the-hitch. Consequently in being constricted, and especially if the strand was a twisted one as usual,

a twisted -loop'projection would form therein and become an ad]unct or protuberance, or

Fpin-up as it is known, on the ultimate weavers knot, making'it in that respect-defective; again, there was the possibility that the tension operativeto constrict said hitch as soon as 'it was cast off would operate, since" the hitch during constriction was not controlled, to cause the hit'ch'to slip off the end of'the loop of the'shuttle strand, which would producenot a weavers knot-butafslip-kiiot. The present invention therefore'has for its object to" pro vide for controlling the hitch of the first strand in'any case of forming a'weavers knot,

whetherin producing a'net or for whatever purpose, dur'ingits constrictionabouti the loop of the'second strand. V

The drawings show the invention more or less diagrammatically,

Figs. 1, 2 and 3 illustrating in successive stages the manipulation of two strands to form a weavers knot; Figs. 4 to 7 showing mechanism for forming such a knot in accordance with this invention and with the moving parts in progressively diiierent positions,and

Figs. 8 and 9 are respectively a longitudinal section ofthe shuttle and a transverse section of the same and its race on line 99, Fig. 4'. i

Let 1 denote a table or the like having an aperture 2 for passage of the shuttle and races 3 and 4: for the shuttle above and below the table. Let it be assumed that the strand a with which the shuttle strand is to form the knot is held tensioned by some means, as by and between a pin 5 to which,it may be, it is tied and a drum 6 on which it is wound and which, by a spring 7 connecting the drum with the shaft 8 on which it revolves, tends to wind the strand a on the drum; said strand here extending up through a hole 9 in the table and a guide 10' thereon. And let 11 and 12 be any means, as two pegs, on' which to form and releasably maintain a looped hitch in strand a; bobbin 14: onwhich is wound the strand bto beknotted and which may be frictionally resisted against too free rotation as by contact with portion 14a of the shuttle, said strand being held at some point, as 15, or in the forming of a net it may be at the knot previously formed. Shuttle 13' travels back and forth in the races 3 and 4, in eachdirection through the loop'of the hitch which is heldby the pegs in bridgingrelation'to aperture2; it may be confined to a definite path by having a cross-sectionally T-shaped shoe 13a with which the races in 'cross sectioii conforin (Figi 9.)

The shuttlehas projecting from that end" which is its following end on its return The shuttle 13 containsa then over another portion thereof and. bridges the hitch loop; nor in the passing, as by a shuttle 13., of another strand, as I), up through the loop of such a hitch at one side of portion a? and down through the loop at the other side of said portion so as to produce, when the hitch is constricted on the tlius-fmincd loop a. \veavers knot (as in Fig. The novelty in the present invention resides in means, as 16, which controls the hitch until it more or less closely constricted upon the loop of the other strand.

(That side of the hitch which portion a bridges I term its obverse side and its oppodo its reverse side.)

i lg, now, to o T: in Fig. 4 strand (a is arranged in Fig. 1 with its portion a in the dotted position of Fig. 1 and shuttle has moved from the reverse to the observe side of the hitch through the loop and drawn its trailing strand Z) through said loop. T he hitch is then completed by crossing portion a of strand (1 over its other portion thus producing space a (Fig. 1) in the loop back through which the strand Z) is next drawn by the shuttle l ig. (So far as concerns this invention the hitch might already be completed as shown by the all-solid lines in 1, or so as to have loop-space a already formed, when the shuttle first n'i-oves through the loop, which in such a case it would of course do at the left of portion (L in Fig. 6 the shuttle has in returning nearly cleared the hitch, which is shown cast off from peg 12 and, due to the tension on strand a, gripping peg 11 and the upper nose of the shuttle. In Fig. 7 the shuttle has nearly completed its return flight so that the hitch has slipped off its said nose and become caught on its member 16 which yields to the tension on strand a more and more toward peg 11 as the shuttle returns, so that the hitch closes gradually and always under the con trol of the tail, until the tail itself finally clears the loop and springs back to its normal position (Fig. 8). Since the hitch a is thus under control or held stretched, while allowed to constrict, until it is more or less sufficiently reduced to throttle the loop Z), which embraces portion at of strand a, I avoid any possibility of forming pin-ups, producing slip-knots or other unintended conditions.

It is not of course material how the shuttle is moved back and forth; what means manipulates strand a to form the hitch; or how the hitch is cast-off from one of the means 1112 so long as it is held stretched, on being cast elf, by means of which one shall be yieldable toward the other and preferably carried by the shuttle itself.

Usually the mechanism will comprise I means to tension one strand (as a), coactive means (as 1112) to releasably maintain the herein described looped hitch in said strand (to wit, that form of hitch in which a portion of one strand passes first under and then over another portion thereof and bridges the loop), a shuttle movable from the reverse side of the hitch through the loop thereof and at one side of the loop-bridging portion of said strand and then back through the loop at the other side of said strand-portion, whereby to loop around said portion another strand (1)) trailing from the shuttle, and means to guide the shuttle in its movement in each direction in a definite path, the shuttle having an elastic flexible hitch-holder (as 16) projecting from the end thereof which follows in its backward movement and yieldable crosswise of its said path and adapted, as described, on release of the hitch from one of said coactive means, to catch and hold the hitch during said backward movement of the shuttle.

But regardless of any means, as the shuttle. for effecting the manipulation of the strand .7), my invention broadly contemplates elastic yielding means (as 16) cooperative with one of said coactive means (as 11) to resist constriction of the herein-defined looped hitch upon the passing of such another strand as b from the reverse side of the hitch and through the loop thereof and at one side of the loopbridging portion of the strand forming the hitch and then back through the loop and at the other side of said portion and also upon releasing the hitch from the other of said coactive means.

Indeed, in its broadest scope, given means to tension one strand (as a), my invention simply contemplates means (here 11-16) c0- operative to maintain the herein-defined looped hitch in said strand distended while being constricted and while another strand (as Z2) stands looped around the loop-bridging portion of the first strand.

Having thus fully described my invention what I claim is:

1. Mechanism for tying a weavers knot comprising means to tension one strand, coactive means to releasably maintain the herein-defined looped hitch in said strand, and a shuttle movable from the reverse side of the hitch through the loop thereof and at one side of the loop-bridging portion of said strand and then back through said loop at the other side of said strand-portion, whereby to loop around said portion another strand trailing from the shuttle, and means to guide the shuttle in its movement in each direction in a definite path, said shuttle having an elastic flexible hitch-holder projecting from the end thereof which follows in its said backward movement and yieldable crosswise of its said path and adapted on release of the hitch from one of said coactive means to catch and hold the hitch during such backward movement of the shuttle.

2. Mechanism for tying a weavers knot comprising means to tension one strand, 00- active means to releasably maintain the herein-defined looped hitch in said strand, and elastic yielding means cooperative With one of said coactive means to resist constriction of the hitch upon passing another strand from the reverse side of the hitch and through the loop thereof and at one side of the loop-bridging portion of the first strand and then back through the loop and at the other side of said portion and upon also releasing the hitch from the other of said coactive means.

3. Mechanism for tying a Weavers knot comprising means to tension one strand and means cooperative to maintain the hereindefined looped hitch in said strand distended While being constricted and While another strand stands looped around the loop-bridging portion of the first strand. 7

4. Mechanism for tying a Weavers knot comprising means to tension one strand and means cooperative to maintain the hereindefined looped hitch in said strand distended While being constricted and While another strand stands looped around the loop-bridging portion of the first strand, one of said cooperative means being elastic and yieldable toward the other.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

THOMAS BROWNLEE. 

